Sermon for July 31, 2016- The Best Laid Plans: Vanity and Building Bigger Barns

Ecc. 1:2, 12-14, 2:18-23
The words of the Teacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem. 
Vanity of vanities, says the Teacher,
   vanity of vanities! All is vanity. 
What do people gain from all the toil
   at which they toil under the sun? 
A generation goes, and a generation comes,
   but the earth remains for ever. 
The sun rises and the sun goes down,
   and hurries to the place where it rises. 
The wind blows to the south,
   and goes round to the north;
round and round goes the wind,
   and on its circuits the wind returns. 
All streams run to the sea,
   but the sea is not full;
to the place where the streams flow,
   there they continue to flow. 
All things are wearisome;
   more than one can express;
the eye is not satisfied with seeing,
   or the ear filled with hearing. 
What has been is what will be,
   and what has been done is what will be done;
   there is nothing new under the sun. 
Is there a thing of which it is said,
   ‘See, this is new’?
It has already been,
   in the ages before us. 
The people of long ago are not remembered,
   nor will there be any remembrance
of people yet to come
   by those who come after them.

I, the Teacher, when king over Israel in Jerusalem, applied my mind to seek and to search out by wisdom all that is done under heaven; it is an unhappy business that God has given to human beings to be busy with. I saw all the deeds that are done under the sun; and see, all is vanity and a chasing after wind. 

What is crooked cannot be made straight, and what is lacking cannot be counted. I said to myself, ‘I have acquired great wisdom, surpassing all who were over Jerusalem before me; and my mind has had great experience of wisdom and knowledge.’ And I applied my mind to know wisdom and to know madness and folly. I perceived that this also is but a chasing after wind. For in much wisdom is much vexation, and those who increase knowledge increase sorrow.

Remember your creator in the days of your youth, before the days of trouble come, and the years draw near when you will say, ‘I have no pleasure in them’; before the sun and the light and the moon and the stars are darkened and the clouds return with the rain; on the day when the guards of the house tremble, and the strong men are bent, and the women who grind cease working because they are few, and those who look through the windows see dimly; when the doors on the street are shut, and the sound of the grinding is low, and one rises up at the sound of a bird, and all the daughters of song are brought low; when one is afraid of heights, and terrors are in the road; the almond tree blossoms, the grasshopper drags itself along and desire fails; because all must go to their eternal home, and the mourners will go about the streets; before the silver cord is snapped, and the golden bowl is broken, and the pitcher is broken at the fountain, and the wheel broken at the cistern, and the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the breath returns to God who gave it. Vanity of vanities, says the Teacher; all is vanity.

Besides being wise, the Teacher also taught the people knowledge, weighing and studying and arranging many proverbs. The Teacher sought to find pleasing words, and he wrote words of truth plainly. The sayings of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings that are given by one shepherd. Of anything beyond these, my child, beware. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh.

The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God, and keep his commandments; for that is the whole duty of everyone. For God will bring every deed into judgement, including every secret thing, whether good or evil.

I hated all my toil in which I had toiled under the sun, seeing that I must leave it to those who come after me —and who knows whether they will be wise or foolish? Yet they will be master of all for which I toiled and used my wisdom under the sun. This also is vanity. So I turned and gave my heart up to despair concerning all the toil of my labours under the sun, because sometimes one who has toiled with wisdom and knowledge and skill must leave all to be enjoyed by another who did not toil for it. This also is vanity and a great evil. What do mortals get from all the toil and strain with which they toil under the sun? For all their days are full of pain, and their work is a vexation; even at night their minds do not rest. This also is vanity.​

Luke 12:13-21
 Someone in the crowd said to him, ‘Teacher, tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me.’ But he said to him, ‘Friend, who set me to be a judge or arbitrator over you?’ And he said to them, ‘Take care! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of possessions.’ Then he told them a parable: ‘The land of a rich man produced abundantly. And he thought to himself, “What should I do, for I have no place to store my crops?” Then he said, “I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.” But God said to him, “You fool! This very night your life is being demanded of you. And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?” So it is with those who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich towards God.’

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The Best Laid Plans: Vanity and Building Bigger Barns:  
Ecc. 1:2, 12-14, 2:18-23 and Luke 12:13-21 

They say that there are a few subjects of which one should not speak in polite company. Two of them are money and religion. And, what do we have here: two scripture readings about money and work. That's convenient. I wonder what kind of good news they contain for this fine Sunday morning.  Let's look at Ecclesiastes... "Vanity of vanities... all is vanity... seeking wisdom is an unhappy business... I hated all my toil in which I had toiled under the sun... gave my heart up to despair... all their days are full of pain, and their work is a vexation." Ok. That doesn't really seem like good news at all. It's actually kind of a downer. Alright. Well then. How about the Gospel? Luke usually has some good news. Let's see what story Jesus is sharing with his friends.  

First there's an argument that Jesus wants to avoid about an inheritance. Then, he teaches people with a parable about a rich farmer. He had a good year and the land was pretty productive. That seems like good news. Who doesn't like a rich harvest? Jesus said that the farmer talks to himself about what to do with his excess. What he, under the guidance of himself, decides to do is to tear down his barns and build bigger ones to store all of his excess grain and other goods. The scripture tells us that the guy said, "I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years: relax, eat, drink, be merry." Nobody else is talking to him in this story. Wait... the next line has another voice. Oh, and it's God. Even better. What is God going to say to this happy man who is talking to himself. "You fool." That's right. God says, "You fool! This very night your life is being demanded of you. And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?" Wait... did God just say that the happy guy who is talking to himself is going to die? And, did God just chastise him for worrying too much about his own future? Sure sounds like it. In the next line Jesus shares the moral of the story: "So it is with those who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich toward God." Ok then. Turns out that this Luke story isn't real chipper, either. Maybe that's why they say not to talk about money and religion. Things get really intense really fast.  

Here's the thing though. I do think money, work, and religion are connected, and not just in a manipulative, televangelist kind of way. Our work and our ability to have the means to survive day to day greatly affect our faith. And, our faith can be a valuable tool in shaping our work and our relationship with money and our possessions. It can be difficult to discern the best way to have these two parts of our lives, our work and financial lives and our faith, intersect and inform one another in ways that are healthy. I think that both of these scriptures can tell us something important about how we work, how we relate to what we earn, and how to connect these things with our faith.  
Let's take a moment to look at the passage from Luke. It's starts out with a guy trying to get Jesus to arbitrate a dispute about an inheritance. This is the second time somebody has tried to rope Jesus into a family argument and he won't have it. Rather than get in the middle of an argument this family should be able to manage themselves, he takes the time to talk about the ways that love of possessions can distract you from what is most important in life. He says, "one's life does not consist in the abundance of possessions." He then told the story about the guy who wants to build bigger barns. A couple scholars I read this week pointed out something that I missed when I was reading this scripture. Did you all notice who the guy was talking to during the story? Himself. Only himself. He talks to himself about his money. He congratulates himself on his good fortune and good planning. He tells himself to relax because he's got his own future figured out. Where is everybody else? I mean, he's a farmer with a lot of land. It is very unlikely that he has done all this work on his own. Have you ever heard of a barn-raising with just one guy? Why isn't he consulting with anyone else about these important decisions in his life?  

A couple different scholars that I read this week suggested that the reason this matters is because it demonstrates that this man has forgotten something very important: he's forgotten that his actions affect others. You might wonder if he has a good reason for not talking to anybody else. Maybe he doesn't have any family. He shouldn't be penalized for that. You would be right if that were the case. But, I don't think it is here.  I don't think Jesus' intention was to describe someone who was alone. I think he wanted to describe someone who was only willing to think about his own needs. That's why he doesn't consult anyone else. At the end of the story, Jesus' critique of the man was that he stored up treasures for himself and had forgotten to be rich towards God, not that he was lonesome and didn't have anyone to talk to. You might then ask, how would this story be different if the man had chosen to be rich towards God? 

Here's one possible alternate reading. A rich man's farm did really well one season and he was able to raise an abundant harvest. Seeing that he had more than he could possibly use, he wondered what he would do with it. He prayed to God, asking for guidance on how to use this excess well. He spoke with the supervisors on his farm and sought their advice. At the synagogue, he spoke with the priests to see if they knew of any needs. In the end, he offered some of his crop to a neighbor who's fields had not been nearly so bountiful. He also gave his employees a bonus, making sure that they, too, profited from their hard work. He gave to the temple, too, offering a sacrifice in thanks for his good fortune.  He saved the last bit extra for a rainy day. He knew that not every year would be as good as this one. 

Do you hear the difference that adding consultation with God and with others who are affected by your work makes? I think the second version of the story is closer to the ideal that Jesus has been describing to us. With conversation, prayer, and consultation, this is becomes a story not about the farmer's fool hardy planning, but, instead, a story of compassion and generosity. This becomes a story shaped by faith more than fear for the future. This is a version of the story that demonstrates richness towards God and neighbor. This is the version of the story that we are called to live out. But, it is not so easy to live a life of confident generosity. Let us not forget the curmudgeon in Ecclesiastes. We must wrestle with his story as well. He is one who has been burdened by his work. He believes that all the work that he has done has been done in vain. He is frustrated by the idea that someone else will enjoy his work, whether or not they deserve it. Ultimately, later in the book, he will continue the work he has started. However, he does so with a much more cynical view. In light of Jesus' call to be rich towards God, how are we to engage with the cynical account of toil?  

​Part of me wonders if a major gift of Ecclesiastes is that this book holds space for the grumpy and burnt out and cynical. It serves a witness to what can happen when our work as people of faith in communities of faith feels forced and meaningless. When we hear the words of the narrator, the one often called Qoheleth, we can remember what it feels like when work is only toil and even the search for wisdom feels meaningless. More importantly, we can remember that we can feel all kinds of cynical and still be a beloved child of God. After all, the narrator's testimony is still here... still included for us to learn from. Even the curmudgeon isn't excluded from God's grace. Maybe that's part of the gift of this scripture, too. We will sometimes feel like our work has been in vain. We will sometimes worry about our future and be tempted to store up possessions in order to insulate ourselves from fear. Even then, we will still be beloved, and that love will call us once again out beyond ourselves, beyond the cynicism, fear, and worry, back to generosity, peace, and connection. Love will call us out of the big barns of our own building, back to the tables of fellowship and joy. Whether we are the curmudgeon or the guy with the barns, disconnected from neighbor and not talking to God, we can remember that we are still beloved. We always have the chance to turn back towards that love.  ​

Resources Pastor Chrissy Consulted when writing this sermon: 

Meda Stamper: https://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=2923

Karoline Lewis: https://www.workingpreacher.org/craft.aspx?post=4693

Elisabeth Johnson: https://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=1725

David Lose: https://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=720

Walter Bouzard:
https://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=2936

Walter Brueggemann, An Introduction to the Old Testament: The Canon and Christian Imagination (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2003)